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was above the law, but it also went a step towards verifying his identity. If the owner was the man that Duke Everich thought he was, then this attitude of being above governments was a characteristic that had been attributed to him.
    "Duke Jiardin will accompany me," conceded Duke Everich as he indicated to the army to wait outside for him. "Open the gates."
    The mercenary nodded to his men and the gates swung open. The carriage rode along the well-maintained drive to the front door of the mansion. Duke Everich saw even more mercenaries and shook his head as one of them opened the carriage door. Another mercenary held the door to the mansion open, and yet another guided them to the sitting room. Duke Everich and Duke Jiardin entered the bare sitting room and halted. Duke Everich looked around the sitting room. The room was devoid of furnishings except for two old chairs. While two guards were stationed in the sparse room, there was no sign of the estate owner.
    "If you will have a seat," directed their escort as he pointed to the two old chairs, "the Master will be with you soon."
    Duke Everich turned to snarl at the mercenary, but the door to the room closed before he could turn around. He shook his head as he marched over and sat in one of the chairs. Duke Jiardin sat in the other chair and fidgeted, trying to get comfortable. Within moments the lights flickered to life beyond the silkscreen, and the visitors watched as the shadowy figure seated himself.
    "Greetings Duke Everich," intoned the voice. "Welcome to my home, Duke Jiardin."
    "Well you obviously know who we are," scowled Duke Everich. "Perhaps you could introduce yourself now. I am not used to meeting with people who hide their faces from me."
    "And I am not used to being bothered by meeting with politicians," retorted the voice. "I thought perhaps that saving your life might be worth something to you. If it is not, then our business is concluded and you may leave."
    Duke Everich started to rise angrily when Duke Jiardin touched his arm and motioned towards the guards. Duke Everich turned to see the guards ready to charge across the floor and slowly sat back down. He did not care for the feeling of being a captive in his own city.
    "Let me set the record straight," the voice said softly. "I am not a patriot of your city. I do not care much for politics, or politicians, or your Contest of Power. I have information that is valuable to you. Are you interested in purchasing it?"
    "What do you want for the information, and how do I know it is of value?" questioned Duke Everich.
    "My information is always of value," chuckled the voice. "What I want for the information is a favor from the future King of Targa. The nature of the favor will be determined at some future time."
    "An open-ended favor?" queried Duke Jiardin. "That is an outrageous price. I would advise against this bargain. No information could be worth such a price."
    "Is not the life of the future King worth a favor from the future King?" retorted the voice.
    "Let me guess," quipped Duke Everich, "you will try to claim a seat on the Council for your information?"
    "Hardly," laughed the voice. "While a Council seat might be a valuable commodity to trade with, I personally would not accept a seat if you gave it to me for free. I have already stated that I do not care for games of politics. I am not a Contest of Power player. Nor do I ever wish to be. My request for a favor is vague because I can think of nothing right now that you could give me of value. Perhaps in the future you will have something that I desire. Perhaps not, in which case the information will end up being free. The choice is yours in any event."
    "I cannot offer something so valuable without some idea of what the value of the information is," declared Duke Everich. "I also do not like dealing with someone who remains hidden from me. What is it you fear by disclosing yourself?"
    "My fears are not of your concern," the voice shot back. "I